Warner Bros. Discovery Inc is seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages from Paramount, which launched the satirical show South Park.
Broadcast rights to ‘South Park,’ the popular animated comedy about rude children, are the subject of a new lawsuit in which Warner Bros. Discovery Inc is seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in damages from Paramount Global (PARA.O).
South Park recently made headlines after its latest episode allegedly poked fun at Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle.
Meghan and Harry’s supporters are expected to celebrate the lawsuit against South Park owners who humiliated the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
In a lawsuit filed Friday in New York state court in Manhattan, Warner said it paid Paramount and “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone more than $500 million in 2019 for the exclusive right to air 333 episodes nationwide on HBO Max, including the upcoming seasons 24-26.
Warner said that after being informed in 2020 that it would not be getting 10 new episodes, representing season 24, as the COVID-19 pandemic halted production, the creators of “South Park” began producing new episodes. other content, as Paramount prepared to launch its own Paramount+ streaming service.
The lawsuit says the defendants cemented their apostasy in August 2021 when Paramount’s MTV unit announced an agreement to air new “South Park” content on Paramount+, through Season 30 in 2027.
Warner said it now expects to receive only 14 of the 30 new episodes of “South Park” it was promised, including two “Pandemic Specials” that Paramount says make up season 24.
“Rather than honoring its obligations to Warner/HBO, [the defendants] engaged in a campaign of verbal deception aimed at circumventing the terms of the 2019 agreement,” the complaint states.
Defendants also include MTV and South Park Digital Studios, a joint venture between Paramount, Parker and Stone.
“We believe these allegations are without merit and we look forward to proving it through the legal process,” Paramount said in a statement.
A spokeswoman and attorneys for Parker and Stone did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“South Park” premiered in August 1997 on Paramount-owned Comedy Central.